PRODUCED BY BAD WOLF AND NEW LINE CINEMA
Following last week’s historic triple nomination in three separate BAFTA TV categories – Drama Series, Single Drama and Miniseries – Jack Thorne has been announced as the writer on the much-anticipated new drama series based on Philip Pullman’s epic fantasy trilogy of novels, His Dark Materials.
His Dark Materials is the first commission from Bad Wolf, the UK/US production company founded by Jane Tranter and Julie Gardner and co-sited in South Wales and Los Angeles and is New Line Cinema’s first move into British television.
Jack Thorne said today: “It is such an honour and a privilege to be given this opportunity to delve into Philip Pullman’s world. What I always loved about Bad Wolf’s intentions with this project was the notion of sounding every note. The His Dark Materials trilogy are vast and glorious books full of beautiful characters and I’m going to work as hard as I can to try and do justice to them.”
Philip Pullman commented: “I’m delighted to welcome Jack Thorne as writer on the TV dramatisation of His Dark Materials. Jack is a writer of formidable energy and range, and I’ve greatly enjoyed talking to him and learning about his plans for bringing His Dark Materials to the screen. I’m certain he’ll do a superb job, and I look forward to seeing the whole project develop as he shapes the story.”
His Dark Materials is one of the supreme works of imaginative fiction for both children and adults published in the twentieth century. It has been published in more than forty languages and has sold worldwide close to 17.5 million copies.
The series will be Executive Produced by Philip Pullman, Jane Tranter and Julie Gardner for Bad Wolf, Toby Emmerich and Carolyn Blackwood for New Line Cinema and Deborah Forte for Scholastic.
Jack Thorne – Further information:
Jack began his screenwriting career on SHAMELESS and SKINS and lead wrote the darkly comic C4 series CAST OFFS, broadcast in 2009. Jack’s television work includes THE FADES for BBC3, and THIS IS ENGLAND ’86, ’88 and most recently ‘90. Jack created the rural teen drama GLUE for E4 which premiered September 2014 and his original pan-European crime thriller for Sky and Canal+ THE LAST PANTHERS aired last fall in Europe and transmits stateside on Sundance next month.
Jack was nominated for a historic three BAFTAs last week; Best Single Drama for DON’T TAKE MY BABY, Best Drama Series for THE LAST PANTHERS and Best Miniseries for THIS IS ENGLAND ’90.
His original 4-part series – NATIONAL TREASURE – for The Forge/Channel 4 starring Robbie Coltrane, Julie Walters and Andrea Riseborough is currently in production. Feature wise, Jack wrote the original THE SCOUTING BOOK FOR BOYS and adapted Nick Hornby’s A LONG WAY DOWN for director Pascal Chaumeil. Jack continues to write for the stage where his plays have been performed up and down the UK and abroad. His Royal Court hit, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, transferred to the West End in spring 2014 and late 2014 his play HOPE opened at The Court. THE SOLID LIFE OF SUGAR WATER transferred from the Edinburgh fringe to The National Theatre after a successful tour, and Jack is writing HARRY POTTER & THE CURSED CHILD for the West End to open this Summer.
